Do Worms Really Know They Are Worms?

Holly Dobbing, Year 2

I’m going to start with a short but so incredibly huge question: what is consciousness? There are a thousand answers to that question. In fact, when you google it, you get almost four MILLION results (go on, try it). But it’s a concept that means something different to each of us. Am I conscious when I’m walking to the shop? Yes. Am I still conscious when I am daydreaming about being on a beach instead of walking to Aldi? Still yes, but probably significantly less so. How about when I’m sleeping? Or in that weird phase of half-asleep-half-awake? Where does consciousness start? Where does it end? What exactly is it that makes us conscious? Are other animals conscious? Are worms? Who determines who is conscious and who is not? I would argue it’s entirely subjective. Perhaps it isn’t. Who knows?

So now that I’ve successfully tied your brain into knots, let’s take it back to basics. The Oxford English Dictionary defines consciousness as, “the state of being aware of and responsive to one’s surroundings,” and “a person’s awareness or perception of something.” 

Let’s start by looking at that first definition. Essentially, this means two things: 1. to be conscious you need to be awake; and 2. to be conscious you need to find some sort of meaning in your surroundings. Which links nicely to the second definition which implies that consciousness comprises our every thought and feeling. It’s the warm feeling you get in your heart when you have a bite of chocolate. It’s the joy you feel when you’re laughing with your friends. It’s the love you have for your partner. The pain you feel when you hit your elbow. And the bitter knowledge that eventually we’re all going to die. (Sorry!) To summarise, consciousness is not only being awake, but being alert and responsive to the things around you. 

But what about when you’re awake but not responsive? Or responsive, but not awake? These anomalies are simply referred to as ‘altered-states of consciousness’ and can be induced by brain injury, drugs, alcohol and even extreme tiredness (Srinivasan, 2015). Seems like a bit of a cop-out really, but it does illustrate how consciousness isn’t a black and white concept – it exists on a spectrum that we all move along in our daily lives. 

Another thing to consider is whether or not consciousness is limited just to humans. In other words, do worms really know that they are worms? According to National Geographic, animals are conscious beings that can feel and perceive events around them, and make judgements and decisions based on what they have witnessed (Worrall, 2015). The article (which you can read for yourself via the URL in the references below the article) also states that animals are capable of empathy and if watched closely, often have personalities (Worrall, 2015). Think of your own pets if you have them, they play and have fun, they act scared when there is a present danger and they can learn behaviours if you train them. Surely that equates to consciousness. To some people, yes. To others, no. Some scientists argue that just because animals can react to stimulation doesn’t mean that they are conscious (Worrall, 2015) – much like receptors in our skin react to heat without being conscious themselves. Furthermore, it’s completely unethical to experiment on animals to test their level of consciousness, therefore there is no proof either way. Part of me thinks it is easier for people to assume that animals aren’t conscious so that it’s easier for them to justify awful acts – testing drugs, slaughtering animals for meat, battery-farming. 

This calls into question yet another key idea: if humans and animals can be conscious, can artificial intelligence somehow be conscious too? Is consciousness something that can be taught? Maybe it could be – there aren’t many human traits that aren’t teachable. But maybe it’s really an innate property. You either are conscious or you aren’t. It’s thought that consciousness arises in the cerebral cortex (Sohn, 2019) so perhaps you need a cerebral cortex to be conscious. What if we built a cerebral cortex? Imagine we can replicate the intricate neural pathways that bring about consciousness. Does that in itself induce consciousness? 

Consciousness is a bit of an enigma to the scientific community. It’s a word that means something different to different people and most people don’t totally know how to explain it. I’m aware that I’ve asked a lot of questions in this article, and given you significantly less answers, but I’ll ask just one more: what does consciousness mean to you? 

References

SOHN, E. 2019. Decoding the neuroscience of consciousness. Nature [Online]. Available from: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02207-1 [Accessed 24th February 2022].

SRINIVASAN, T. M. 2015. Healing altered states of consciousness. International journal of yoga, 8, 87-88.

WORRALL, S. 2015. Yes, Animals Think And Feel. Here’s How We Know. . National Geographic [Online]. Available from: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/150714-animal-dog-thinking-feelings-brain-science [Accessed 24th February 2022].